“One of the advices I give my players is that patience pays while you are learning. But patience will not pay if you don’t learn‚” 1980s Pirates captain and defender Malesela said.
“And I think the best thing about Xola Mlambo is that he learns every time. He listens.
“And I think he needs to have an understanding of what the demands of the national team are. If he’s got that‚ then he deserves to be in the national team.
“I must think he’s maturing. Maybe there are things that the national team coaches see that he lacks‚ that maybe somebody can advise him about. And he will eventually be in the national team.
“But‚ having said that‚ if I was coach of the national team I wouldn’t even blink – immediately [he would be in].
“By the way‚ it’s not because I coached him. I’m one‚ and he knows‚ who demands a lot from players. Sometimes I think I’m unreasonable and they think I’m unreasonable because I demand high‚ high quality.